Creature Labs target kids and parents with Creatures Adventures

Creature Labs have just released Creatures Adventures; specially targeted at parents and children aged between 4-10 years.

Following the success of the Creatures series, which have sold over 1 million copies worldwide, Cambridge-based software developer, Creature Labs have just released Creatures Adventures; specially targeted at parents and children aged between 4-10 years.

Together, children and their parents can discover a world of possibilities with their very own virtual pet. Norns are real artificial life creatures with their own Creatures Digital DNA, brains, and biochemistry. They learn and think for themselves, but they require players to love, care and play with them.

So what can players do with their Norns?

Creatures Adventures provides you with a nest of Norn eggs and a rich, diverse environment where they can live and breed. You cannot force your baby Norns to do anything in particular, but you can nurture them and nudge them along the right way by rewarding or punishing them for their actions. Baby Norns inherit the Digital DNA (Creature Labs' artificial version of real DNA) from their parents.

How do players know what the Creatures are feeling and how to care for them?

Just like a parent of a young child, players will have to carefully monitor their expressions to gauge what's going on. Feeding and keeping them busy will go a long way to make them content. As with real life parenting, players will have to use their intuition. There are no set rules - just point and click.

The story behind the Creatures phenomenon!

Creatures Adventures is one of a whole new breed of Creatures products, all using the remarkable CyberLife artificial life technology. Creature Labs (formerly known as CyberLife Technology Ltd), is the world's leading developer of artificial life software. As CyberLife, they originally released the first Creatures game back in November 1996, which was followed by Creatures 2 in September 1998. Creatures came about as a result of research into modeling biological systems during the early '90s. CyberLife was born from the belief that if you want to get the properties of real living systems inside computers, you should copy Mother Nature. After all, she's spent a whopping 3.7 billion years ironing out the bugs!

As research continued, it became clear that computers were rapidly becoming powerful enough to create animals that behaved as though they really were alive. Developers at Creature Labs expected the animal to behave like a cross between a toddler, a cat, and a dog -- a sort of virtual pet.

So what is it that makes Creatures so appealing? Just like nurturing real-life pets, people enjoy taking care of and raising their virtual pets. Creatures Adventures is a huge living playground where both PC gamer and their Norn can experience all that virtual life has to offer.

A Special Note to Parents

Creatures Adventures is completely intuitive. There are no menus or keyboard commands to learn -- just point and click. Let your kids loose in Creatures Adventures and their imaginations will keep them going! Timer settings even allow you to put your Norns to sleep whenever you want. Norns will mate and have babies, and when they die, they'll have a special corner of the garden where players can place a remembrance.

Creatures are loveable yet unpredictable little life forms that will provide kids with a completely unique play experience, combining education with entertainment…and just like the kids themselves the creatures may not do what they're told!

Creatures Adventures Norns have personalities representative of their breeds. The way that you raise them will also affect their personalities. Here's a quick rundown of the different Norn breeds and their characteristics:

Brown Alba Norns can either be speedy or friendly Speedy Norns run about a lot and rarely sleep. They have a hard time concentrating on any one task. You may also find that they get restless when bored so make sure you have plenty of toys on hand! Friendly Norns love to be around their friends. They love to copy others and may not eat if their friends would rather play! Dozy Norns enjoy a nice nap any time of day. You may find them dozing in the strangest places! They get tired very easily, so don't over-tax them! Clumsy Norns tend to knock into things. They're not the sharpest tools in the tool chest, but one of the most loveable breeds! Pudgy Norns love to eat! You had better watch your apple tree or they may eat all of your fruit! Shy Norns are very gentle and need frequent tickles and protection. They tend to run away.from the slightest noise Eager Norns may be the easiest to train as they are quite responsive. Unlike Plucky Norns, they may come when they're called! Plucky Norns strut about and act very sure of themselves. They know what they want and will do what they want Creatures Adventures: The Locations

The world that the Norns inhabit is full of some exciting, fun and even spooky places where only the bravest Norns will venture. Where would you hang out?

Toy Room. Full of wacky toys as well as some more conventional ones such as a ball, spinning top, toy train and more. Why not play a game of basketball with your Norn? Nestery. This holds the eggs, nest and cradle. You'll also find a naming so you can give the baby Norn a name. You can accept the name we suggest or decide upon your own! Kitchen. The Kitchen has a never-ending supply of food for your Norns including all the ingredients to make them a special treat or two! 'Play' the pots and pans hanging from the ceiling or break a few dishes. Don't worry - it's virtual! Dressing Up Room. Give your Norn a brand new look! There are a variety of costumes in the dressing up room Front Garden. Watch the world go by from your Norn's front garden. There is plenty of wildlife to observe and interact with Vegetable Garden. Grow vegetables for your Norn to eat - they're particularly fond of carrots! You'll also find plenty of chicken eggs here! Doctor's Cart. Is your Norn feeling unwell? The Doctor is in and can cure a wide range of Norn illnesses. Graveyard. Your Norns will eventually die to make room for more baby Norns. When they do, a special remembrance will be placed in the graveyard for your Norns. Cloud Land. Can you change the weather in your world? You can in the Creatures Adventures World! Make two clouds crash together - if your timing is right and the lightening hits the moving target, you'll win a prize! Friendly Forest. Tik, the living tree, lives here, guarding the entrance to the spooky forest beyond. Meet all his nutty, squirrely friends! Spooky Forest. The resident owl sits on branches in this area, and many sets of eyes peek out of the darkness. Is your Norn brave enough to pass through? Dragon World. Full of musical instruments made of old bones, skin and skulls. The sleeping giants may wake if you play a nice tune. Haunted Castle. Spooky candles flicker in the wind, and the eyes look like they're following your Norn. What other scary creatures lurk here? Dungeon. Beneath the Haunted Castle is the even scarier Dungeon. There are plenty of spooky activities here!